Introduction: Modern Libraries provide a central location for everyone to access information. While much of this information is from trade publishing, libraries also provide access to government documents. Government documents provide, among other things, statistical data, research results,information about laws, and programs that individuals can access.
Many patrons don't realize the volume of information that's available to them from government resources. Therefore, I've created this pathfinder to give librarians an idea of the resources they can provide to their library users, which will improve the level of service they can provide.
Subject Headings
Users may search their OPAC for the following subject headings.
- Government Documents
- Government Agencies
- Government of Canada
- Canadian Government
- United States Government
Many libraries use the Superintendent of Documents Classification System (SuDocs) to organize collections of government documents, rather than the Library of Congress or Dewey Decimal systems in use for the rest of the library. The system was created by the U.S. Superintendent of Documents to classify government documents according to the government agency which published them.
Here's the library guide for SuDocs numbers: http://www.gl.iit.edu/govdocs/sudoc.html
This is a list of the locations of Government Depository Libraries in Canada: http://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/locatingOurPublications/depositoryLibraries/index.html— just click on your province or territory to access the list of libraries. There are also links to other countries around the world that have Government Depository libraries.
Dewey Decimal classification numbers to browse:
011
025
070
Library of Congress classification numbers to browse:
Z 1223
Z 688
Books & Pamphets (to buy)
- List of Canadian government books available, along with purchasing information and prices. Print books are published by Federal Publications, Inc. http://www.fedpubs.com/subject/govern.htm
- List of Government of Canada Publications. Many of these require a fee, and print copies will be shipped to your library. Materials are sorted into categories such as recent (previous 3 months), budget, Industry Canada, as well as browsing the catalogue. http://publications.gc.ca/
Encyclopedia (free online)
- The Canadian Encyclopedia — http://thecanadianencyclopedia.com/
Online Indexes/Databases of Canadian Government Documents
- http://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/search/search.html — Web page index on the Government of Canada web site to all of the government electronic publications currently available in the Depository Services Program (DSP). Users may browse by subject area, title, or author. Hundreds of subjects are available through a drop down box for browsing. Documents are available as PDF, which require Acrobat reader to display and read. Content ranges from classroom teacher guides, to government foundational reports, to reports on meetings in Canada and around the world.
- http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/politics-government/index-e.html — Library and Archives Canada (LAC) has provided access to all the electronic documents in its collection. Documents are accessed through three main areas: database, resources, and virtual exhibitions. Content is mainly text based, with a few historic images, even in the virtual exhibitions. The Expo 67 virtual visit combines Flash animation with still images and music, for the opening to a text/image tour.
- Statistics: http://www.statcan.gc.ca/ — The Statistics Canada Web site is available in French or English. Statistics can be located by subject, summary, geography, publications and other options. There are daily news releases, plus recently reduced news releases available in PDF format. There is also a simple subject search or advanced search, which uses Boolean operators for location of specific content.
- Proceedings & Reports of Committees (Federal): http://www.parl.gc.ca/common/committee.asp?Language+E - This web page provides access to the transcripts of proceedings from the House of Commons committees and subcommittees (Committee Evidence), along with the broadcast schedule for proceedings, URLs to different committees, reports and publications.
- Bills: http://www2.parl.gc.ca/senatebills/BillsGovernment.aspx - This web page provides full text links to Senate and Government bills that have been introduced.
- Statutes: http://library.mcmaster.ca/govpubs/guides/canada_statutes.htm -This web page provides information on how to access the statutes through historic government publications. The Justice Laws Website, http://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/, from the Department of Justice, provides an online source of consolidated Acts and regulations of Canada. It can be searched with a simple search box or by utilizing titles of specific acts.
- Royal Commissions, Commissions of Inquiry, Task Forces, Consultant Reports, Review Committees, White Papers: http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/indexcommissions/index-e.html/ - This index provides information on over 7000 documents published since Confederation, which are generally available through Amicus.
Government Documents/Web sites for Use in Education
- http://www.statcan.gc.ca/estat/licence-eng.htm — E-Stat for use in Education. Users must confirm that they are either students or teachers in order to use this site. The site allows teachers to generate tables, maps, and other tools for classroom use. There are also some teaching guides available.
Saskatchewan Government Publications
- The Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan live broadcast and video archive: http://www.legassembly.sk.ca/legislative-business/watch-legislative-proceedings/ - Web site includes streaming video archive of government proceedings since 2005, plus a series of educational videos.
- Saskatchewan Government publications: http://www.publications.gov.sk.ca/ - Web site provides a variety of links to publications available, some at a cost. Users may browse by subject, Ministry, or program/service.
- Statutes/Laws: http://www.qp.gov.sk.ca/ - the Freelaw web page provides provides free online access to current Government of Saskatchewan legislation. Paper copies of legislation are sold to fund Freelaw®. Information can be found by browsing or using the search link (right navigation frame).
- Statistics: http://www.stats.gov.sk.ca/ - The Saskatchewan Bureau of Statistics provides information on the economy, labour force, census, consumer price index, and more. Reports are archived in annual PDF files that require Acrobat reader to access.
United States Government Publications
- http://catalog.gpo.gov/F — Catalogue of United States government publications, searchable through a simple search box or advanced Boolean search. In the advanced search results may be limited by year, format, language and type. There's also a new titles search that outlines specific timeframes up to the last three months.
- http://www.census.gov/statab/www/ccdb.html — The County & City Databook is produced by the U.S. government and provides census data. Information is available online or can be ordered in print format. Data is sorted into chart format for easy access.
- http://www.fedstats.gov/ - The Federal Stats Web site provides statistical information from over 70 agencies in the United States. Data can be accessed by general search, browsing listings, and through data access tools. Kids pages from various agencies are listed under their own heading.
Government Sources for Statistical Information Around the World
- EuroStat - http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/statistics/themes - The Eurostat regional yearbook provides statistical information on life in the European regions in the 27 Member States of the European Union. Information is accessed through links that provide text and graphical data. There's also a search box for easy usage.
- United Nations Statistics Division - http://unstats.un.org/unsd/default.htm - The United Nations compiles and publishes statistical information in a variety of areas, including economics, demographics & social, environment & energy, and geography. Data may be accessed through browsing subject headings or using the search box.
- World Health Organization - http://www.who.int/whosis/en/ - WHO operates WHOSIS, the World Health Organization Statistical Information System to collect and disseminate information about core health statistics for the 193 WHO member states.
Multimedia Resources
- Informative video from North Central Michigan College's Library on using their Government Documents/Federal Depository section. (note the video is 9:35 minutes.
A tutorial on finding U.S. Government documents. Length 10:21 minutes.
Instructor for Introduction to Internet Writing Markets
and Publish and Sell Your E-Books
and Credenda Virtual College
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